There are certain truths that cannot be found in any business textbook – at least not in any book that pretends to be reputable. They are learned only by experience.

Some of these truths may sound unpleasant, but knowing them gives an advantage.

So here are some of the great secrets of business life:

1   Getting your hands on cash is relatively easy, and almost always possible, even in the most adverse circumstances – so long as you are willing to pay the price, but, more often than not, that price is too high;

2   Contrary to popular prejudice, you will find most entrepreneurs are fairly honest in their dealings – it is the general public who will lie to the entrepreneur, try to cheat him, and steal from him if they can;

3   Hard selling does work – but only in the short-term, and it destroys all longer-term prospects;

4   It is psychologically very difficult for most people to give a direct “no” to a direct request made by a person directly in front of them – so their strategy is usually to try to avoid getting into a position where such a question can be asked, or to try to weasel out of their commitment later;

5   Most problems solve themselves, given time, so long as one does not panic;

6   Once you are in a room together, everyone is equal in the room, so, if you can somehow get face to face with an actual decision-maker, no matter how powerful, your chances are as good as anyone’s;

7   The times when you were absurdly overoptimistic and the times when you were irrationally pessimistic will probably balance each other out in the end;

8   The person you are trying to impress is probably at least as nervous and insecure deep down as you think you are; and

9   Instinct is usually more reliable than analysis, because you are probably not in possession of all the facts, and would probably have no time to analyse them properly if you were.